Government supported start ups to hit the media

05 July 2016 11:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Start & Grow, a government initiative delivered by Cavendish Enterprise partners to provide support to start up and growing businesses, has joined forces with JournoLink, the PR platform for small businesses, to give all Start & Grow entrepreneurs the knowledge and skills they need to hit the headlines.

Many small businesses, when they start, fail to make the most of PR opportunities. Firstly because they have no idea who to approach and how to do it, and secondly, because virtually every available penny is spent on getting their business idea up and running, leaving nothing for marketing and promotion. By engaging with JournoLink, Cavendish Enterprise, through the Start & Grow programme, is giving start up businesses direct access to the journalists who want to write about them and hear their stories, together with the support of Journolink to position their articles professionally.

Up to 3,000 businesses will now have the opportunity to benefit from a master class programme to help them perfect their news releases. Additionally these new businesses will have access to a database of journalists, and will be included on a contact list of businesses for journalists to approach when they require contributions and quotes to include in press articles.

Peter Ibbetson, co-founder of JournoLink said, “Every day we see fantastic small business successes, new ideas put into commercialisation, jobs created, export orders won and people’s lives improved. Yet so few of these stories ever get to reach the broadcasters and journalists.

“JournoLink is absolutely set up to change that, and we look forward to helping the entrepreneurs setting out through the Start & Grow programme get their businesses talked about in the press, with all the marketing benefits that brings.”

The Start & Grow programme, designed by Cavendish Enterprise, is delivered by the Cavendish partners to startup and growing businesses across England. The support is tailored to start-up businesses with expectations of high growth and job creation, and will continue for up to three years after the business starts trading. Start & Grow is supported by a government initiative under Round 6 of the Regional Growth Fund and is aimed at boosting the economy in less fortunate areas of the country through supporting new businesses bringing private investment and jobs to the region.

The programme is tailored to suit the business needs of new entrepreneurs offering up to 100 hours of support, advice and training in areas such as HR and employment, financial planning, and marketing.

“By partnering with JournoLink we are providing an additional ‘added-value service’ for our Start & Grow clients which will further support their business growth and early stage success. Start & Grow is already a comprehensive and solid business support programme and the addition of PR advice and training can only strengthen the overall support.” said Kevin Horne, chairman of Cavendish Enterprise.

“Cavendish continues to prove its commitment and passion to helping entrepreneurs and new businesses through our delivery of innovative support schemes. The partnership with JournoLink will provide an additional area of support beyond start up and on through the crucial early stages of growth.”

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Notes to editors:

The Regional Growth Fund
The Regional Growth Fund (RGF) has supported eligible projects and programmes raising private sector investment to create economic growth and lasting employment. It has invested £2.85bn to help businesses in England to grow, and is expected to create or safeguard over 580,000 jobs.

Cavendish Enterprise
Cavendish Enterprise is the trading name of Cavendish Consortium Ltd. The consortium is made up of six of the largest enterprise agencies across England, together with the National Enterprise Network. Its members are amongst the most prominent not-for-profit social enterprises in the country, each with over 30 years’ experience.
The partners are all longstanding members of the business support community and are respected for their independent and impartial advice and their impeccable probity. Cavendish Enterprise has a reputation for working in close partnership with a variety of organisations from the private, public and third sectors to achieve excellent results in business enterprise.
Contact: Davina Young, Marketing Manager, 01603 227862
www.cavendishenterprise.co.uk

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About JournoLink

When small businesses told us that they wanted to get media coverage, but didn't have the know how or the budget, and journalists told us that they wanted more entrepreneurial business stories and spokespeople, but struggled to find them, we scratched our heads, sharpened our pencils and built Journolink.

A no-nonsense online service that links the businesses and their news directly to the journalists who want to write about them. That's what we set out to create, and that's exactly what Journolink does.